Vario 1/5th scale Vietnam era OH-6A

I built this model about three years ago and it is still going strong. It is a perfect companion for my 1/5th scale Heli-Factory Huey Gunship. Having served my hitch in the Army (13B) I have great interest in the Vietnam War and have built several models representing that era. I knew I wanted to build a quality Vario fuselage with Vario Benzine mechanics but converted to electric. My mechanics were the style with the servos mountied in the frames under the swashplate. The electric conversion was very easy using a “Darrell Sprayberry Clutch Conversion “ which I purchased from Mark Smith at Vario /HeliWorkShop. I wanted to use a clutch to be able to have a very slow and realistic spool up of the main rotor. I modified the frames which would allow me to have a full cockpit and a partially unobstructed rear cabin.

Next was to modify the stock Vario 500C landing gear. The kit was supplied with the “high skid gear” which was not aporpriate for the OH-6A which had “low skid gear”. Cutting the struts would also require changing the stance of the landing gear. Once that was accomplished I used the “ Vario Method” of attaching the struts to the skids using a very strong epoxy ( I used JB Weld ) to secure everything together (I will add this method to the “ SectionTips & Techniques). I had my doubts about this method but let me tell you it has worked perfectly and this model weighs a solid 34 pounds.

Next step was to remove the “Surf Board” (circled in blue) from the top rear of the fuselage. I did this by first applying fiberglass cloth and resin to the inside of the fuselage where I was going to remove material. This would retain strength in the fuselage once the “Surf Board” was removed.

Igave everything a good wipe down with Lacquer Thinner and then sanded the entire fuselage with wet/dry sandpaper, sprayed the fuselage and necessay parts with filler/primer. I needed to apply the raised panels and panel lines before spending a few hours with a syringe, needle and Elmers Yellow Glue applying rivets. This is a process “not to rush” because once the paint is applied “you got what you see, lol”. Now you can apply the graphics.

Now was time to build the cockpit. Nothing was commercially available that would be suitable for a military OH-6A so it was time for some old school scratchbuilding. I used liteply for the wood along with sheet plastic and assorted sizes and shapes of aluminum tubing. The cockpit was built with pictures and imagination. I had done a lot of research and knew what I wanted, a basic instrument panel, accurate flight controls and a “broom stick” cyclic on the observers left side. I wanted smoke canisters hanging on a wire and a case of hand granades on the floor. The front seat observer would have an M16. All of the wood was sheeted with thin plastic, the tail rotor pedals were made using different shapes of plastic. The instruments were from Vario the fire extinguisher was made from a .223 rifle case. The pilot and observer came from Tailored Pilots. They were weathered to look “combat ready”. The granade case and smoke canisters came from Ebay.

I decided I wanted to add a rear door gunner and did not want to wait for months so I ordered a 1/4 scale pilot from WarBirdPilots. I wanted to place him on the right side so I had to cover the exposed mechanics. I knew he was going to need an M60 machine gun and Patrick Leong quickly 3D printed one for me. After placing him in the helicopter I sent a picture to my good friend Randy Rivers (who is a retired ARMY helicopter pilot) and he responded with a message that any good door gunner needed a stogie in his mouth and a bandolier of 7.62 ammo around his neck and it needed some Air Cav Stetsons in the cockpit. I took his advice, lol.

This video was editied with full size OH-6 sound and of course an old Vietnam favorite “Fortunate Son” by Creedence Clearwater Revival

I have applied a lot of weathering to this model, I really wanted it to “look the part” of a combat OH-6. I dirtied up the flight suits and boots, tried to show a lot of wear and I even weathered the blades. It is powered by a Scorpion 5035 and a Castle 160 ESC set at 900 rpm on the main rotor, has a ModelSoundsInc sound system and a Bavarian 3X controller.